CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF Stock: Sowell Financial Services LLC Increases Stake

Sowell Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) by 817.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 43,972 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 39,179 shares during the quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in CF Industries were worth $5,519,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of CF Industries during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,410,607,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of CF Industries by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,458,907 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $579,062,000 after purchasing an additional 146,682 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,048,671 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $265,999,000 after purchasing an additional 158,119 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $198,857,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,747,078 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $189,139,000 after purchasing an additional 32,293 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

CF Industries Price Performance

CF opened at $116.42 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.63, a PEG ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 4.32, a current ratio of 4.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $123.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.94. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.42 and a twelve month high of $141.96.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.63 by ($0.90). The business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. CF Industries had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 24.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.37 EPS. Equities analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 13.90 EPS for the current year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 30th. Investors of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. CF Industries’s payout ratio is currently 17.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on CF. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $129.00 price objective on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on CF Industries in a research report on Friday, September 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $162.00 target price for the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded CF Industries from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $98.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Freedom Broker lowered CF Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on CF Industries from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.11.

CF Industries Profile

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products. The company produces ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate, ammonium nitrate and nitric acid, which are used primarily in agricultural fertilizers and a range of industrial applications. CF Industries also supplies products such as diesel exhaust fluid and other nitrogen-based solutions.

The company serves agricultural and industrial customers in North America and internationally. Its manufacturing and distribution operations include facilities in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, supported by an extensive logistics and distribution network.